BJP leader arrested for inciting party workers to attack cops

Kolkata: In a major development in connection with the death of two students at Islampur in North Dinajpur district, the police arrested a BJP leader who was found prodding his party workers to attack the police on Sunday afternoon.

The arrest came a few hours after Trinamool Congress secretary general Partha Chatterjee hit out at RSS and CPI(M) in connection with the Islampur incident and said that they are two sides of the same coin. The police further claimed outsider involvement in unleashing violence at Daribhit High School in Islampur.

"We have arrested the district president of BJP Shankar Chakraborty from Domohona area. Charges of instigating the local people in beating up the police have been levelled against him," a senior police officer in the district said.

Chakraborty was arrested by Karandighi police station only a few hours after ADG (Law & Order) Anuj Sharma told reporters that they have gathered a video footage where a BJP leader was found providing directions to his party workers to beat up the police.

"One cannot say anything if he has a microphone in his hand. Such statements of attacking the police is criminal activity and we will take strong action," Sharma said.

He further maintained that such instigating speech tantamounts to an attempt of creating riot. "We have got some photographs as evidence that shows some men hiding their faces inside the school. They are not students. So what is their purpose in the school?" Sharma added.

Partha Chatterjee, after holding a meeting with senior party leaders at Trinamool Bhavan that included Subrata Mukherjee, Chandrima Bhattacharya and Subrata Bakshi, alleged that BJP-RSS had created trouble at the school in a calculated manner. He also lashed out at CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty, alleging that the Left Front is trying to stall the recruitment of teachers. "We are fighting against communal forces and they (CPI-M) are joining hands with these forces," he maintained. The police on Sunday interrogated Urdu teacher Mohammad Sanaullah, who had faced agitation while he went to join the school on Thursday. He is a resident of Kidderpore in Kolkata and has been staying near the school for the last sixteen days. Senior Trinamool Congress leader Gulam Rabbani and Islampur MLA Kanailal Agarwal visited the residences of the two deceased students on Sunday.

It may be mentioned that Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, who is currently on an official tour of Europe, had said on Thursday that BJP and RSS have to answer why the two students were killed.